Clothespin



Sept. 17, 1963 R. E. CARR CLOTHESPIN Filed May .26, 1960 INVENTORATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,103,727 CLGTHESPIN Roy E. Carr, HighPoint, N.C., assignor to Phase, Incorporated, High Point, N.C., acorporation of North Carolina Filed May 26, 1960, Ser. No. 31,978 4Claims. (Cl. 24-437) This invention relates to clothespins, andparticularly to improvements in clothespins of the general typedisclosed in the patents to Harris, 2,500,677, issued March 14, 1950,and Harris et al., 2,720,003, issued October 11, 1955.

The clothespin disclosed in the mentioned prior pa ents consists of apair of jaws of plastic, or other molded material, formed on, or fixedto, the ends of a length of spring wire which has been bent to .form -aring, or loop, at the top and has its legs crossed to hold the jaws intace-to-face relation. The jaws have matching diverging end surfaces, sothat the clothespin can be snapped over a clothesline in holdingposition, and it can be removed from the line by inserting the wire loopand pulling upwardly. The loop also provides a handy means for holding asupply of clothespins on the finger.

The general object of the present invention is to provide a clothespinof this general type which will have improved operating characteristicsand which is structurally adaptable to ease of fabrication and assembly.

A more specific object of the invention is to provide a clothespin ofthe wire loop type wherein the wire ends are held against lateraldisplacement in use, so that there will be no likelihood of the jawsbecoming moved out of lateral alignment with one another to the extentthat they will be out of facial contact and will slip past one anotherunder the pull of the wire spring.

Another object is to provide jaw elements for a clothespin which can bepremolded and readily attached to the spring wire ends.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a clothespin whichwill have an improved bond between the jaws and the spring wire ends, sothat the jaws will be firmly attached to the wire and will withstandconsiderable strain without breaking loose from the wire.

Other objects of the invention will become apparent from the followingdescription of one practical embodiment thereof when taken inconjunction with the drawings which accompany, and form part of, thisspecification.

In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevational View of a clothespin embodying theprinciples of the present invention;

FIGURE 2 is an edge view 'of the clothespin shown in FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a horizontal section taken on the line 3--3 of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 4 is an enlarged detail view, illustrating one jaw of theclothespin in vertical section and the end por-v tion of the spring wireadjacent the jaw before insertion therein;

FIGURE 5 is an enlarged view of the jaw section of the clothespin,showing the jaws in section and the wire ends secured in place therein;and

FIGURE 6 is an enlarged edge view of one of the jaws.

In general, the invention is concerned with clothes-pins of the typehaving jaws attached to the ends of the crossed legs of a spring wireloop to be held in face to face contact by the spring action of theloop, wherein the jaws carry means to engage the crossed legs to preventlateral separation of the legs and displacement of the jaws, and

the jaws and wire ends are formed for ready attachment to one another ina firm and permanent manner.

Referring to the drawings in detail, there is shown a olothespin 1composed of a handle, or finger grip portion, 2 and jaws 3. The handleportion serves as a spring to urge the jaws toward one another inclamping rela tion.

The handle portion of the rclothespin is formed of a single length ofspring wire bent to proper shape. Preferably, the wire is shaped as aloop 4, having an arcuate top 5, downwardly extending substantiallyelongated parallel side arms 6, inwardly projecting cross arms 7 whichhave their inner ends in lapped relation, and legs 8 depending from thelapped ends of the cross arms and attached to the jaws. The legs 8 haveparticular configuration which will be described later.

The jaws are preferably molded, but could be made in other ways. Thematerial of the jaws is a suitable plastic, or other moldable material.Each jaw has a straight back 9, land angularly related gripping and camsurfaces 10 and 11, respectively. The gripping surface includes arecess, or indentation, 12 extending transversely across the jaw andcooperating with a similar recess in the other jaw to encircle aclothesline, or rod, and hold the clothespin against accidental releasefrom the line. The cam surface, while generally angularly related to thegripping surface, is defined as a smooth curve from the gripping surfaceto the jaw tip 13. Normally, the gripping surfaces of the jaws are inabutment, and the cam surfaces diverge outwardly from the plane ofabutment to provide a tapered entrance throat 14 for the line, andinwardly converging cam faces which will be contacted by the line tospread the jaws against the tension of the spring wire handle to allowthe line to seat between the gripping jaw surfaces in the recesses 12.

The backs of the jaws are relieved near their tips by the formation ofpockets 15, which lightens the jaw tips and reduces the amount ofmaterial needed for the tips. The backs also have grooves 16 whichextend from the jaw tops down the back toward pockets 15, at an angle tothe side edges of the jaw [and symmetrically positioned with respect tothe jaw centerline. Grooves 16 receive the legs 8 of the wire handle,and, by having the legs oppositely inclined relative to one another, andat the same angle as the grooves in the jaws, a single jaw form may beused and will fit upon either leg of the hand-1e. When two jaws areassembled on a handle, the jaws will be in proper alignment with oneanother. The groove bottom is formed to provide two aligned, recessedseats 17 and 18, separated by a raised wall 19. Each leg of the wirehandle is bent to generally follow the contour of the groove bottom. Tothis end, the legs have arcuate clients 26 to lie within the seats 17 ofthe grooves, and hook-like ends 21 to project into the well-like seats18. When the jaws are properly fitted onto the legs 8, the material ofthe back edges of the jaws is heated and caused to flow so as to bridgeover the groove in the jaw above the :ancuate oifsets Ztl. This willserve to securely lock the jaws to the legs of the handle, yet allowslight rocking movement of the jaws relative to the legs to allow thejaws to bring their gripping surfaces into abutment when the clothespinis not in use and to permit the jaws to adapt themselves to the line, orother member, being gripped.

Each jaw is provided with a pair of upstanding ears 22 at its top. Theears project firom the side edges of the jaws, so that the ears arespaced apart and from a channel guideway 23 between them. The jaws andhandle legs are so proportioned and related that the cross arms 7 of thehandles will lie within and move within, the channels 23 during opposingmovement of the cross arms in directions substantially along the lengthsthereof so that the cross-arms will be held against movement laterallyof the jaws, and the jaws will consequently be held against lateralshifting relative to one another. This will maintain the jaws in-face-to-face relation and hold the spring of the handle in propertension.

It will be obvious that the clothespin disclosed herein can be madeeasily and will be quite strong and long lasting. It will be very simple.to use, as the entrance throat 14 can be placed over a clothesline anda slight downward pressure on the handle will :cause the jaws toseparate and to snapover the line. The spring tension of the handle willhold the device firmly in place. When it is desired to remove theclothespin, an upward pull upon the handle will cause the jaws to camapart and snap off the line. During movement of the jaws toward and fromone another, they will be held in alignment by means of the cross-armsriding in the channels 23 formed between the ears 22. Thus, they willalways move, and be held in guided relationship.

While in the above one pnactical embodiment of the invention has beendisclosed, it will be understood that the specific structure describedand shown is merely by way of example and the invention may take otherforms within the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A clothespin comprising a pair of jaws, each jaw having one end of aspring wire permanently secured thereto, the spring wire projectingsubstantially normal to the jaw to which it is attached to overlie theopposite jaw to form a cross-arm, with the cross-arms of the two jawsoverlapping above the jaws and the remaining portions of the wireprojecting upwardly in parallel relation and joined at the ends thereofto form a single spring handle, said handle being substantiallyelongated relative to said jaws and said handle having substantiallystraight side arms to draw the jaws together into facial contact, andmeans carried by the jaws to embrace the overlapping cross-arms to holdthem against lateral separation and the jaws against relative lateraldisplacement during opposing movement of said cross-arms in directionssubstantially along the length thereof.

2. A clothespin as claimed in claim 1, wherein the means embracing thecross-arms comprise spaced ears upwardly projecting from the jaws anddefining channels in which the overlapping crossaarms lie.

3. A clothespin according to claim 1 wherein the jaws are provided intheir backs with grooves in which said ends of said spring wire areseated for substantially the full length thereof, the jaws havingintegralbridges across the grooves to lock said ends of said spring wirewithin the grooves.

4. A clothespin according to claim 3 wherein said ends of said springwire, are of undulating form and the bottoms of the jaw grooves haverecesses forming seats generally conforming to said ends of said springwire to receive the same.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,357,233 Hagelstein Nov. 2, 1910 2,540,722 Gardner Feb. 6, 1951 FOREIGNPATENTS 627,805 Great Britain Aug. 16, 1949 112,790 Switzerland Dec. 1,1925

1. A CLOTHESPIN COMPRISING A PAIR OF JAWS, EACH JAW HAVING ONE END OF ASPRING WIRE PERMANENTLY SECURED THERETO, THE SPRING WIRE PROJECTINGSUBSTANTIALLY NORMAL TO THE JAW TO WHICH IT IS ATTACHED TO OVERLIE THEOPPOSITE JAW TO FORM A CROSS-ARM, WITH THE CROSS-ARMS OF THE TWO JAWSOVERLAPPING ABOVE THE JAWS AND THE REMAINING PORTIONS OF THE WIREPROJECTING UPWARDLY IN PARALLEL RELATION AND JOINED AT THE ENDS THEREOFTO FORM A SINGLE SPRING HANDLE, SAID HANDLE BEING SUBSTANTIALLYELONGATED RELATIVE TO SAID JAWS AND SAID HANDLE HAVING SUBSTANTIALLYSTRAIGHT SIDE ARMS TO DRAW THE JAWS TOGETHER INTO FACIAL CONTACT, ANDMEANS CARRIED BY THE JAWS TO EMBRACE THE OVERLAPPING CROSS-ARMS TO HOLDTHEM AGAINST LATERAL SEPARATION AND THE JAWS AGAINST RELATIVE LATERALDISPLACEMENT DURING OPPOSING MOVEMENT OF SAID CROSS-ARMS IN DIRECTIONSSUBSTANTIALLY ALONG THE LENGTH THEREOF.